John 19-21    Jesus, the Son of God, the King of the Jews,  is presented to His people.. and is utterly rejected.  Placed into the hands of Roman soldiers, He is crucified.   His body is laid in a tomb by Joseph and Nicodemus, two secret disciples from among the Jewish leaders.

But then the morning of the 3rd day comes.... and Mary arrives at the tomb and finds it empty!  The words of Jesus are true... their joy is greater than ever as the disciples see their Lord face to face once again!  Thomas needed to see in order to believe and Jesus allowed him to do so.  But He says to us who have not yet seen Him, " Blessed are they who did  not see and yet believed."

Jesus calls us, along with Peter and the disciples, to follow Him.  To love Him.  To feed and tend His sheep... those who belong to Him.   Like John, we are to bear witness of those things we see and know are true about Jesus.  To bear witness of the fact that we are also, individually, " the disciple whom Jesus loved"...

John tells us that he wrote these words, " that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing you may have life in His name." ( v31)

Father in heaven,  great and mighty and holy are You!  Thank You for sending Jesus to lay down His life in order to give us true life.  May we follow Him every day, every moment, in all ways. That You will be glorified and honored by our lives as well.   Help us Lord, for we are in need of You.  Heal our bodies and give us strength for today.  In His Name we ask this. Amen